Yummy Inland Saline–Alkali Crabs? Aquatic Products with Quality and Flavor Preferences in Market Encroachment

As China’s marine economy and green high-quality development strategy both progress, traditional marine crab farming is reaching its capacity limits. In response, the land-based aquaculture farming model for saline–alkali crabs has emerged, offering new opportunities for the industry. Simultaneously, consumer demand for specialty aquatic products is rising, with growing preferences for products of varying quality and distinctive flavors. To remain competitive, developing quality and flavor differentiation strategies that align with market structures is essential. In this paper, a sequential game-theoretic model is constructed to capture supplier behavior under different market conditions while incorporating consumer heterogeneity and cost structures. The paper examines how flavor preference, quality preference, and market segmentation shape supplier strategies, focusing particularly on the interaction between market entry and segmentation under geographic and cultural influences. The model incorporates consumer utility functions, search costs, and quality investment costs, allowing equilibrium strategies to be derived and compared across scenarios. By incorporating information search costs and technology investment, this paper analyzes optimal pricing and quality decisions in order to inform effective market entry strategies. In addition, the paper explores how the timing of entry affects product quality improvements and price competition, highlighting the evolving acceptance of new products by consumers. In coastal markets, suppliers must prioritize consolidating their presence and leveraging brand equity in order to enhance pricing power. In contrast, emerging markets require accelerated penetration through product differentiation and improved information transparency. This paper proposes an integrated approach to optimizing pricing and product strategies, providing firms with precise market encroachment and competitive strategies that can enhance their market share and longterm competitiveness.